Chevy has been teasing us off-roaders with the Colorado ZR2 since 2016, and it has finally arrived. Chevy really put a lot of effort into the ZR2 and added some technology that has never been used on an off-road truck.

Personally, I ignored the ZR2 up to this point thinking it was just another “okay” off-road truck. I thought that it would be another truck with a rear locker and some mild suspension, but it’s so much more than that. Let me tell you what makes the ZR2 so awesome.

The Midsize Off-Road Category

When Ford released the Raptor it completely changed the pickup truck category. It basically created a new sub-category specifically for off-road trucks. That category continues to get more popular every year.

Toyota has been leading the field in the “midsize” off-road segment for quite a while with their Tacoma TRD Pro. Nissan made an attempt to join the midsize off-road segment with their Frontier Pro-4X, but so far the Frontier Pro-4X has had pretty poor sales. Chevy entered the “mid-size” off-road segment with the Colorado Z71, but it was lacking the off-road features needed to lead this segment.

The Chevrolet ZR2 playing in the mud.

The Chevy Colorado ZR2 takes the idea of a “mid-size” off-road truck to the next level. Chevy’s intention was not to compete with the other midsize off-road trucks, but to blow them out of the water. Not only does the ZR2 have more off-road features, it also has the option for the Duramax engine.

What Makes The ZR2 An Off-Roader?

To start things off Chevy is shipping every ZR2 with 31-inch Goodyear Wrangler Duratrac tires mounted on 17-inch wheels. The suspension is 2 inches taller, and 3.5 inches wider front and rear.

This vastly improves ground clearance, ride quality, stability, and suspension travel. The front suspension has 8.6 inches of travel and the rear has 10 inches of travel. We know that eight inches of travel doesn’t sound like a lot, and it’s definitely not it. This is especially true when you consider the 2017 Raptor has 13 inches of travel. Don’t dismiss the ZR2 just yet though, because it has a trick up its wheel well.

The ZR2’s 31-inch wheel and tire combination.

The Dynamic Suspensions Spool Valve damper, also known as DSSV, is what really makes the ZR2 what it is. This technology was used on the previous generation Camaro Z28 and is used by the brand new Ford GT.

Typically a shock absorber offers one damping setting that never changes. The DSSV dampers change multiple times throughout the suspension travel. This means the suspension can be adequately dampened for daily driving, rock crawling, pre-running, and anything in between.

The ZR2 is the first off-road pickup truck to use the DSSV system, and hopefully not the last. This system helps this lifted truck handle like a small sports car on the road, and helps it soak up the biggest of bumps off-road.

Seriously, Chevy let journalists jump the ZR2 at the launch event. Ford didn’t even do that for the new Raptor, which is pretty surprising considering the Raptor is known for being jumped, ask us how we know.

Having a little fun in the dirt with the ZR2 can be done with its DSSV suspension.

Chevy didn’t stop at the awesome DSSV suspension. The ZR2 has electronic lockers on both the front and rear axle. This rather obviously is a massive improvement for off-road use. Many “off-road” trucks only have a rear locker, so seeing a locker in both axles is a nice change. The lockers combined with the DSSV suspension will take the ZR2 to places some Jeeps might not even be able to get to.

Summary

The ZR2 isn’t just another meh off-road truck. Although it still isn’t on the Raptor’s level, it blows every other midsize off-roader out of the water. The trick suspension is what really makes this truck special. It allows the ZR2 to handle like a sports car on the road, but can also soak up the occasional jump.

We think if Chevy could have given the ZR2 11 inches of travel it could actually dethrone the Raptor as the best production off-road truck. But the ZR2 will be the midsize off-road king. Let us know what you think of the Colorado ZR2 down in the comments below!